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Mental Health Awareness Week: Children and young people urged to use free online service for mental health and emotional wellbeing support

Children and young people living in the Humber and North Yorkshire areas are being encouraged to use a free online mental health and emotional wellbeing service if they need support during Mental Health Awareness Week (18th-24th May) and beyond.

People aged between 11 and 25 in Hull and East Yorkshire, North Lincolnshire and North East Lincolnshire, and North Yorkshire can register to use Kooth - a free, anonymous online counselling and emotional wellbeing service which can be accessed using a computer, smartphone or tablet device.

They can access Kooth, which is accredited by the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy, to receive one-on-one online sessions with qualified counsellors, receive and provide peer-to-peer support through moderated online forums, and read and contribute articles.

Kooth can also be used to keep an online journal and track your wellbeing via an interactive goal tracker. There are no waiting lists or thresholds for use, so people can use the service as soon as they register.

Kooth – created by XenZone, the UK’s largest provider of online mental health services – is available across the Humber, Coast and Vale Health and Care Partnership area, which includes the cities of Hull and York and large rural areas across East Yorkshire, North Yorkshire and Northern Lincolnshire.

Melanie Bradbury, Strategic Lead – Mental Health and Learning Disabilities Commissioning at Hull Clinical Commissioning Group, said: “I want to take the opportunity during Mental Health Awareness Week to encourage all children and young people in the Humber and North Yorkshire areas to access the range of services available to support their mental health and emotional wellbeing should they need help. This is especially important during the ongoing coronavirus situation, which we know can be a cause of heightened stress and anxiety for many people.

“To compliment the historic services we have made available, young people can access Kooth which is a fantastic early intervention and prevention service which allows people aged between 11 and 25 who are struggling with their mental health to receive prompt help and support when they need it, so it’s great that this online service is available to every child and young person living in these areas.”

Dr Lynne Green, XenZone’s Chief Clinical Officer, said: “We urge the young people of Hull and East Yorkshire, North and North East Lincolnshire, and North Yorkshire to make the most out of Kooth. The articles and forums are a great way for young people to take a preventative approach to their wellbeing and learn from others who may be in similar positions, while our trained counsellors are there for them when they need it.”

Kooth (kooth.com) is a free online mental health and emotional wellbeing support service, which provides children and young people easy access to an online community of peers and a team of experienced counsellors. Access is free of barriers to support: there are no waiting lists, no thresholds, no cost and complete anonymity.

More than 1,500 children and young people across the country log in to Kooth every day.

Kooth was first launched in 2004 by XenZone and is accredited by the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy, the professional association for members of the counselling professions in the UK.

The provision of Kooth in Hull, East Yorkshire, North Lincolnshire, North East Lincolnshire, Vale of York and North Yorkshire means young people in each of the areas of Humber, Coast and Vale Health and Care Partnership can now benefit from the service.